Dueling Grounds MTG Card


Dueling Grounds - Invasion
Mana cost
Converted mana cost3
RarityRare
TypeEnchantment
Released2000-10-02
Set symbol
Set nameInvasion
Set codeINV
Number245
Frame1997
LayoutNormal
BorderBlack
Illustred byPete Venters

Key Takeaways

  1. Improves combat by highlighting single, powerful creatures and dictating the pace of each combat phase.
  2. Enables focused resource management, allowing for a more strategic deployment of other spells and creatures.
  3. Demands strategic deck-building to leverage its combat restrictions and maximize its battlefield control.

Text of card

No more than one creature may attack each turn. No more than one creature may block each turn.

"You think you can stop me?" hissed Tsabo. "I think I can kill you," replied Gerrard.


Card Pros

Card Advantage: Dueling Grounds shines in its ability to skew the battlefield to your favor. Limiting each player to a single creature attack per turn, this enchantment can be a key component in strategies that thrive on powerful, singular threats—accentuating the quality of creatures over quantity and effectively turning each combat phase into an exclusive showcase for your most formidable creature.

Resource Acceleration: While Dueling Grounds itself doesn’t directly provide mana acceleration, its true strength lies in setting up an environment where your fewer, more impactful creatures can dominate. In decks tailored to capitalize on single, high-impact creatures, it indirectly helps to conserve resources. Instead of deploying multiple creatures, you focus your resources on maximizing the power of one, allocating the rest of your mana and spells to control the game.

Instant Speed: Even though Dueling Grounds is not an instant, it imposes an instant-speed mentality on the game. Opponents must think on their feet and adjust their strategies at the speed of light. Combat tricks, removals, and other instant-speed interactions gain value as each player tries to maximize the potential of their limited combat phase, pressuring opponents to spend resources more judiciously and allowing for intricate decision-making at every turn.


Card Cons

Discard Requirement: Dueling Grounds, as a unique card in Magic the Gathering, does not typically require a discard; however, incorporating it into your deck can metaphorically act as discarding opportunities to include other cards that might synergize better with your overall strategy.

Specific Mana Cost: Dueling Grounds demands a precise mana investment of one green and two generic mana, which could potentially clash with your deck’s mana curve or limit the card’s inclusion in multi-colored decks that may not prioritize green or have the flexibility to support this cost.

Comparatively High Mana Cost: With a casting cost of three mana, Dueling Grounds can be considered costly given its specialized effect of limiting battles to one-on-one combat. Players might find that other cards could be more impactful for the same or lower mana investment, especially in environments where controlling the number of creatures that can attack or block each turn is less critical.


Reasons to Include Dueling Grounds in Your Collection

Versatility: Dueling Grounds offers a unique twist to control playstyles by limiting each player to one creature attack per turn, making it a versatile addition that can shift the tide of battle in decks designed around powerful single creatures or control-focused strategies.

Combo Potential: This enchantment pairs exceptionally well with cards that tap or incapacitate creatures, as it ensures that an opponent’s restrained creature count is felt more acutely. It can also synergize with your unblockable or high-powered creatures, effectively harnessing its restrictive nature to your advantage.

Meta-Relevance: In a game environment teeming with aggressive creature-based strategies, Dueling Grounds can be a game-changer. By disrupting opponents who rely on swarming tactics and overwhelming numbers, it ensures your strategic defenses are reinforced, potentially giving you an edge over the prevalent metagame.


How to beat

Dueling Grounds is a unique enchantment in the landscape of Magic: The Gathering that can dictate the tempo of combat. Players can find themselves constrained by its rule that only one creature can attack and block each turn. This can be particularly challenging if you’re facing an opponent with a formidable single creature, making it hard to push through with an offensive strategy or to fortify your defense.

To gain the upper hand against Dueling Grounds, consider using removal spells that can bypass the enchantment’s limitations. Enchantment destruction spells like Naturalize or Disenchant offer a clear path to eliminating Dueling Grounds, clearing the way for your creatures to attack and block as needed. Additionally, cards that enable multiple combat phases within a turn, such as Aurelia, the Warleader or World at War, can also nullify the constraints imposed by Dueling Grounds, giving you more flexibility during your attack phase.

In essence, addressing Dueling Grounds requires strategic inclusion of enchantment removal or combat phase manipulation within your deck. By focusing on these strategies, you can dismantle the control Dueling Grounds exerts over the battlefield and regain the initiative, keeping your gameplay fluid and your opponents on their toes.


BurnMana Recommendations

Embracing Dueling Grounds within your MTG deck can sharply transform your matches, especially in environments that favor quality over quantity. Its presence on the battlefield naturally throttles swarming strategies, creating a unique situation where each creature’s impact is magnified. If your arsenal includes cards that incapacitate your opponent’s creatures or you possess formidable attackers that work well solo, Dueling Grounds is an enchanting force-multiplier. As it reshapes combat dynamics, ensuring your strategic acumen is paramount. For those players ready to optimize their deck’s single-threat potential and exploit limited combat to their advantage, uncover the full potential of Dueling Grounds. Dive deeper into strategy-driven content and sharpen your competitive edge with us.


Cards like Dueling Grounds

In the enchanted realms of Magic: The Gathering, Dueling Grounds plays a unique role in controlling the battlefield. Offering a resemblance to cards such as Silent Arbiter, Dueling Grounds limits the number of creatures that can attack and block each turn. However, Dueling Grounds exudes its strength as an enchantment, making it a less vulnerable choice compared to the creature-based Silent Arbiter which can be more easily removed.

Other parallels can be drawn with the likes of Crawlspace, which caps the number of creatures that may attack you. While both ensure a reduction in combatants, Dueling Grounds’ restriction applies to the entire battlefield, affecting all players equally and delivering a more balanced tactical environment. On the contrary, Maze of Ith acts in a subtler fashion, removing a single attacker from combat, thus not imposing a broad limitation but focusing on key strategic creature removal.

When weighing the benefits of such strategic MTG cards, Dueling Grounds stands out for its ability to shape the entire scope of combat, serving as a cornerstone in decks that thrive on controlling and limiting opponents’ maneuvers. Its enchantment nature provides a durable battlefield modification, maintaining its influence unless directly addressed by enchantment removal.

Silent Arbiter - MTG Card versions
Crawlspace - MTG Card versions
Maze of Ith - MTG Card versions
Silent Arbiter - MTG Card versions
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Maze of Ith - MTG Card versions

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Where to buy

If you're looking to purchase Dueling Grounds MTG card by a specific set like Invasion, there are several reliable options to consider. One of the primary sources is your local game store, where you can often find booster packs, individual cards, and preconstructed decks from current and some past sets. They often offer the added benefit of a community where you can trade with other players.

For a broader inventory, particularly of older sets, online marketplaces like TCGPlayer, Card Kingdom and Card Market offer extensive selections and allow you to search for cards from specific sets. Larger e-commerce platforms like eBay and Amazon also have listings from various sellers, which can be a good place to look for sealed product and rare finds.

Additionally, Magic’s official site often has a store locator and retailer lists for finding Wizards of the Coast licensed products. Remember to check for authenticity and the condition of the cards when purchasing, especially from individual sellers on larger marketplaces.

Below is a list of some store websites where you can buy the Dueling Grounds and other MTG cards:

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Legalities

Magic the Gathering formats where Dueling Grounds has restrictions

FormatLegality
CommanderLegal
LegacyLegal
OathbreakerLegal
PremodernLegal
VintageLegal
DuelLegal
PredhLegal

Rules and information

The reference guide for Magic: The Gathering Dueling Grounds card rulings provides official rulings, any errata issued, as well as a record of all the functional modifications that have occurred.

Date Text
2004-10-04 The ability affects all players.

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